A patient with whom the nurse is discussing advance directives ...

[abc]

A patient with whom the nurse is discussing advance directives asks, What advantage does a durable power of attorney for health care have over a living will? The nurse should reply that a durable power of attorney for health care:
 
  a. Gives your agent the authority to make decisions about your care if you are unable to during any illness.
  b. Can be given only to a relative, usually the next of kin, who has your best interests at heart.
  c. Authorizes your physician to make decisions about your care that are in your best interest.
  d. Can be used only if you have a terminal illness and become incapacitated.

Question 2

A 79-year-old white man tells a visiting nurse, I've been feeling down lately. My family and friends are all dead. My money is running out, and my health is failing. The nurse should analyze this comment as:
 
  a. normal pessimism of older adults.
  b. evidence of suicide risk.
  c. a cry for sympathy.
  d. normal grieving.

[lauravaras]

Answer to Question 1

ANS: A
A durable power of attorney for health care is an instrument that appoints a person other than a health care provider to act as an individual's agent in the event that he or she is unable to make medical decisions. The patient does not have to be terminally ill or incompetent for the appointed person to act on his or her behalf.

Answer to Question 2

ANS: B
The patient describes the loss of significant others, economic insecurity, and declining health. He describes mood alteration and expresses the thought that he has little to live for. Combined with his age, sex, and single status, each is a risk factor for suicide. Older adult white men have the highest risk for completed suicide.